AVIGNON, France – Gisèle Pélicot, victim of mass rapes organized by her husband for 10 years, condemned Tuesday the cowardice of dozens of men accused of attacking her who say they did not realize it was a rape, adding that French patriarchal society must change. .

Dominique Pelicot, her husband, admitted to drugging his 71-year-old wife and inviting strangers into their home to rape her while she was unconscious, in a trial that attracted worldwide attention and controversy. is transformed into an examination of the pervasiveness of sexual violence.

Most of the other 50 men on trial said they did not realize they were raping her, did not intend to rape her, and did not intend to reject any the fault on her husband, who, according to them, had manipulated them.

“For me, it is the trial of cowardice, there is no other way to describe it,” said Gisèle Pélicot, adding that there was no excuse for attacking her while she was unconscious.

A video recorded by her husband and played in court in recent weeks repeatedly shows her motionless, sometimes snoring, while the accused abused her.

“When you walk into a room and see a still body, at what point (do you decide) not to react,” she said in a speech to the defendants, many of whom were present in the courtroom . “Why didn’t you leave immediately and report it to the police?”

Gisèle Pélicot only became aware of the abuse four years ago, when police came across videos and photos recorded by her husband of the abuse he had orchestrated.

“RAPE IS RAPE”

She told the court she was angry with the defendants, particularly because any one of them could have ended her ordeal at any time if they had reported her husband.

“They must take responsibility for their actions. They raped. Rape is rape,” she added.

This is the third time that Gisèle Pélicot has addressed the court in Avignon, in the south of France, as the trial heads towards the delivery of verdicts and sentences around December 20.

Under French law, Gisèle Pélicot could have requested that the trial take place behind closed doors. Instead, she asked for the event to be held in public, saying she hoped it would help other women speak out and show that victims have nothing to be ashamed of.

“It’s time for society to look at this macho, patriarchal society and change the way it views rape,” she told the court. She said she would never forgive her husband.

On Monday, the Pelicots’ two sons asked the court to punish him severely and also said they would never forgive him and that he was dead for them. Their sister said she believed Dominique Pelicot also drugged and abused her.

Dominique Pelicot is due to appear in court later Tuesday. His lawyer, Beatrice Navarro, said she was “very depressed.”

“I told him we should not leave this hearing without him giving exactly why he did this against his wife,” Navarro said. “So, with all my heart, I hope we come out of this tonight with an explanation.” REUTERS